The Service for the Lunar Sabbath

Before taking the precepts, first pay respect to the Triple Gem—the Buddha, the Dhamma (the Truth he taught), and the Saṅgha (those of his followers who attained that Truth)—

Now the group will chant the standard morning service. If you don’t know it, simply remain silent. When the group has finished, it will chant the request for the precepts in unison. Again, if you don’t know it, remain silent. The request for the five precepts is as follows:

The request for the eight uposatha precepts:

Then repeat the phrase paying homage to the Buddha:

And then the phrases for taking refuge in the Triple Gem:

This finished, the monk officiating will say, Ti-saraṇa-gamanaṁ niṭṭhitaṁ (The taking of the three refuges is now completed). You say, Āma, bhante (Yes, sir). Now repeat the precepts after him (translations are given below):

(If you are taking the five precepts, stop here. If you are taking the eight precepts, continue:)

If you are taking the uposatha precepts, the monk will announce the duration of the uposatha period. Repeat after him:

The monk will counsel heedfulness and announce the rewards of observing the precepts:

You say, Āma bhante (Yes, sir). The monk will continue:

This ends the taking of the precepts.

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The precepts translated are as follows:

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The precepts, whether five or eight, have two foundations. In other words, for them to be broken, they must be transgressed by either (1) the body in conjunction with the mind, or (2) speech in conjunction with the mind. A precept transgressed unintentionally with a bodily action is nevertheless still intact. Say, for instance, you cut a tree or gather flowers to place on an altar, and it so happens that the insects living in the tree or flower stem die. You had no idea they were there in the first place. In this case, your precepts are still intact because you had no intention for them to die. As for verbal actions, suppose that you speak hurriedly, and what you end up saying is different from what you had meant to say, out of either carelessness or inattention. For example, you meant to say three words, but ended up saying four; you meant to tell the truth, but what you actually said was false. Since it was simply a verbal act, and you didn’t have it in mind to speak misleadingly, your five or eight precepts are still intact.

A breach of the ten guidelines can be effected with one of as many as three factors: the body in conjunction with the mind, speech in conjunction with the mind, or the mind acting alone. In other words, a transgression of any sort in thought, word, or deed has to be intentional for there to be a breach in one’s virtue, because the intention—the will to abstain (cetanā-virati)—forms the essence of virtue. This can be checked against any of the various precepts. Intention is the essence of virtue; aspects of virtue apart from that intention are simply its expressions and transgressions.

The intention that qualifies as virtue is the will to abstain in line with the five or eight precepts. The expressions of virtue are simply the precepts that tell what is forbidden. The transgression of virtue is the act of breaking a precept. Virtue is normalcy. Normalcy and right equilibrium in word and deed is expressed by the five precepts and eight uposatha precepts. Normalcy and right equilibrium in thought, word, and deed is expressed by the ten guidelines.

The statement that intention is the essence of virtue is supported by the passage in the Canon where the Buddha says,

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Virtue, as practiced by Buddhists in general, can be summarized into three categories: hīna-sīla, gocara-sīla and anagocara-sīla.

1. Hīna-sīla means simply obeying the precepts. For instance, the first precept tells you not to kill, so you hope to gain merit by looking out for the lives of others, not causing them to die. The second precept tells you not to steal, so you hope to get some good out of taking care of the possessions of others, not causing them to disappear. The third precept rules out illicit sex, so you go around hoping for goodness by looking out for other people’s spouses and children. The fourth precept rules out lying, so you go around looking after other people’s ears by not putting lies in them. The fifth precept rules out alcohol, so you do your part for other people’s liquor bottles by not making them go empty. The same holds true for the other precepts. Practicing virtue in this way is tantamount to being a watchman for other people’s goods. You put yourself on the level of a slave or hired cowhand. Whether you observe the five or even the eight precepts, this is classed as the lowest level of virtue, or as sīlabbatupādāna, attachment to external forms of goodness.

2. Gocara-sīla means making sure that the mind occupies itself only with skillful intentions, such as thinking of ways to act that will be skillful and meritorious. Whether your thoughts deal with the past or the future, with visual objects, sounds, smells, tastes, tactile sensations, or ideas, you are careful to keep them in line with skillful intentions, not letting them fall into ways that are not.

3. Anagocara-sīla means keeping the mind in the present, not letting it wander among distracting thoughts or perceptions. You are mindful and alert, keeping watch over the mind so that it stays exclusively in the present. This is virtue—when virtue reaches a state of normalcy—the sort of virtue truly worthy of heaven and nibbāna.

The virtue that’s careful not to break the precepts can counter the cruder forms of greed. The virtue that guards the mind’s train of thought, keeping it from traveling in the area of unskillful intentions, can do away with anger. The virtue that enters into the present—i.e., virtue in a state of normalcy—can do away with delusion. Thus we can say that virtue can do away with the cruder forms of defilement, i.e., certain levels of greed, anger, and delusion.

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To continue with the service for the lunar sabbath: Now you have the opportunity to hear a sermon. The request for a sermon is as follows:

Now compose your thoughts and keep them fixed on absorbing the nourishment of the Dhamma. Once the sermon is finished, you may proclaim yourself to be a lay adherent of the Buddha, as follows:

(Women should substitute gatā for gato, upāsikattaṁ for upāsakattaṁ, and bhāgini’ssaṁ for bhāgī assaṁ.)

The Pali word for adherent, upāsaka (fem., upāsikā), literally means “one who is close” to the Buddha, Dhamma, and Saṅgha. There are ten qualities looked for in an adherent: five activities to be refrained from and five qualities to possess.

To possess these qualifications means by definition that one is an adherent to generosity, virtue, and meditation.

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Now that the service is over, you should take the opportunity to develop peace and respite of mind. Don’t let the day go to waste. Take the word buddho as your meditation exercise. To be intent on repeating the word buddho in your mind is one form of concentration (samādhi). Discernment (paññā) means thorough comprehension of all fabrications. The value of discernment is that it abandons all forms of defilement. Virtue, concentration, and discernment: These qualities form the heart of the Buddha’s message, which we should all try to develop to the best of our abilities.

Now we will pose a number of questions dealing with virtue and concentration as a way of further elaborating on these topics.